kaypsmith

I was living in Florida when they closed their county run state inspections in 1978, they were nothing but a waste of time, the roads got much safer without them. Mandatory insurance laws were trimmed a couple of years later to make personal liability the only mandatory then, and the insurance rates dropped by 50%.

Here is the link https://texarkanafyi.com/texas-senate-votes-end-mandatory-vehicle-inspections-poll/, sorry for the misinfo. http://dallas.legalexaminer.com/automobile-accidents/legislation-to-end-vehicle-inspections-in-texas-stalls-out/, I didn't check the date close enough, your senate seems to have thought it a good idea, but the house didn't.

Carl, he is referring to the hitch, ball mount, it is used to level the trailer tongue in his case, or tow bar if he were towing 4 down. It is used to make the ball 8" higher than the receiver, or could be reversed in case the receiver is too high on the coach. F41074, etrailer has one also for price comparison, they do work very well. https://www.etrailer.com/Hitch-Anti-Rattle/Roadmaster/RM-062.html

the new law will take effect on March 1, 2018. According to your local newspaper.

In the computer/IT world, this is considered to be an IDtenT error code. Sorry for being off topic, just can't help revving Carl every once in a while. Devil get away!

You are probably right Brett.

I could never get used to shower, brush teeth, and eat breakfast while sitting on the porcelyn throne, LOL. The class B's that we looked at were equiped that way. I didn't mention shave, I use hedge clippers for that anyway.

kstockwe, welcome to the crowd, thanks for joining FMCA, hope you have many happy tales and trails in your class B. Yes Marc, bottoms up, hic!

When you say "tilt-a-bed", I assume that you are referring to an adjustable bed? If it is designed in the same manner as my adjustable bed, and you want to keep using it as an adjustable bed, then just any mattress will not do. The mattress must be able to bend in the locations where the bed does the tilting. Memory foam is my choice because it will do what I want it to do. There are some ways to deal with the heat problem that many seem to have, one of these is to use a down mattress cover over the mattress, not over the sleeper, much cooler in the summer, and warmer in the winter. Sleep number does make an air mattress that work well for many, and of course many other choices, but remember what Richard pointed out about height dimensions, and I looked it up to be sure that I wasn't mistaken, and I wasn't. A standard king size mattress is 76"X80", so be careful to let the seller know that is narrower than a standard king size. Also most adjustable king size beds these days are also adjustable on both sides separately, of course that is not always true, you know what you have. If the mattress is too hard, a 2" memory foam mattress topper is much less expensive than a new mattress, and may well be worth a try. Richard, I never seem to experience the problem that you mention, although, I keep the coach about the same temperature year round, yes I heat in winter, and cool in summer, then I don't live as far north as you.

One more thought for your project, mirror stainless steel for the side panels and the risers would also be very nice looking. You could work up a very nice looking etch design for the risers, which can be lazer etched, or you can make a layover with reverse design and sandblast that design to save money. I borrowed this photo from another post to demonstrate what it can look like. I would suggest the use of 16 gauge as opposed to 20 for your project, also a good sheet metal shop can be helpful for this. Also, the polished diamond plate could be used for the stair treads, a good metal shop can bend it to form a good looking bull nose, it will look good for a couple years before the shine will start to disappear, at which time, a rubberized paint product can be used over it for a nice looking finish in the future. If you should decide on something like this, you can use those outdoor LED light strips that I mentioned earlier at each joint to hide the joint, and add a lighted appeal. Thanks for the photo Rick, I hope no copyright infringement, LOL, beautiful addition. Here is a source for the mirror ss, https://www.ebay.com/itm/STAINLESS-STEEL-SHEET-16-GA-ALLOY-430-MIRROR-36-X-48/311835541762?epid=820748306&hash=item489ad8c102:g:nREAAMXQDnpTZQDB

In the few years (25+) that I have been RV'ing, I have met three famlies that were full time, 1 with very small pre school age, one with a 10 and 12 YO at the time, the third with pre colledge teen agers, not the same couples. Every case they either planned to or they did home school their children, all of those children were some of the best mannered that I have ever met. Some of the worst mannered children, and I have seen an awful lot of them, were the by-product of public schooling, just out for the summer. Not saying that all of PS children are, just a very large percentage of them, compared to the first mentioned group. I personally despise having to dodge the young bicycler that aims directly at me, and I have done absolutely nothing to them.

Mark, I googled class B rv forums, I found a few of them out there, but very little conversation on any of them. Maybe the Class B owners are too busy enjoying their rv's, or just don't like to talk about them. I personally am glad that you enjoy yours and hope that you have many happy tales and trails in front you and your family with yours. Actually I never have counted it as an RV, but the first conversion that I built, was a 1978 Ford Econoline 150, class B. I had a bed, a sink, and a fridge, all built in. We used it a few times, but with all that weight, it was a gas hog. Both Sue and I agreed that was not the lifestyle that we wanted, and actually traded it towards a 1987 27 foot Southwind class A. We used that for two years, then got the fever for a much larger diesel pusher, a Sportscoach Cross Country RT, 34 feet, we loved that old coach, but Sue really had the fever and we almost bought a Holiday Rambler Admiral, but that was in 2008 and the bottom had just fallen out, and no one would finance it at the time. That's when the bus came available on ebay, I bid $5500.00 and won the bid. Had to fly to Baltimore Md., then 300 miles by car to Whitehaven Pa., to drive her home. It was at Evolution Coach for minor repairs, which the owner still owed for at the time, so he paid Evolution out of what I paid him, then I drove her home. I spent one year going through everything mechanical and made any and every repair that I deemed necessary, then started the build of the tanks, plumbing and electrical, then put all the walls and furniture in place, paying for everything as I went. This is now five years with no payments and we both love everything about the coach, and would not even consider trading for anything else. There is nothing shoddy, nor elaborate about her, just designed to be comfortable and very roadworthy with all the amenities of home. We keep her stocked with food, water, and appropriate clothing for all seasons, oh yes, fuel at the top of the 156 gallon fuel tank, if we decide to go for a weekend or a month, all that is necessary is to climb aboard, and yes hook up that dreaded old toad, LOL.

The bus AC on my coach is a 5 ton unit, the compressor works off of the diesel engine, and of course will not cool if the motor is not running. The coach chassis batteries are 24 volts with an alternator built large enough to run the huge fans to push air through rather large ducting with an escape vent for the air to escape in order to cool the entire bus, as a matter of fact, there is a vent that is the entire length of each side window along both sides, there are seven of them 55 inches in length, with a total of 14, 7 each side times two, and the front air works through the same unit across the entire length of the windshield. You would need 75 amps at 240 volts to power such a unit with electricity. That's why the basement units in motorhomes do not work as well. Remember cold air falls, and that is why roof top AC's will always be the best air conditioning for a motor home. Many of the high end coaches are now using what appears to be extremely high sides on their coaches, it is only built that way for the purpose of concealing the view of the roof air units and other piping that would otherwise be seen from the ground level. As Herman points out, 55 humans = a lot of btu's of heat and the bus is designed to keep all passengers comfortable. Also just to mention about bus AC's, while the bus is at the station, and the motor is not running, the depot's have a portable unit that is pushed up against a special vent just behind the driver, this unit pushes air into this vent which feeds the same piping to deliver the bus air, this is how the bus is able to be cooled while being serviced at the terminals.

What amperage is the dryer circuit breaker, and what size is the wire away from that breaker? These questions need to be answered in order to determine is this is problematic or not. To run 30 amps off of this circuit, the breaker will need to be 30 amps at 240 volt, which is a dual pole 30 on each leg. Depending on how long the run is from the breaker, #10 gauge for a short run will be sufficient, but over 100 by code, but I will not run more than 50 for personal reasons, and remembering that the dryer plug can no longer be used as a dryer plug, meaning that the plug itself will need to be removed, I personally would prefer that #8 wire be used all the way back to the CB. Next to consider is that the wire from the CB does need to be 3 conducter plus ground as Richard stated, also the 20 amp circuit extension needs to be wired to the other side of the 240 volt plug, so not overload the 30 amps available on the 30 amp leg. And to do this conversion properly, with the steps above achieved, the dual 30 for 240 volts needs to be changed out to two individual circuit breakers one for 30 amps and one for 20 amps if using a true 20 amp receptacle. Not following these cautions is a fire waiting to happen. Best scenario is to replace the dryer plug with a two breaker box and wire the two new receptacles with two circuit appropriate breakers from here. If this is done in this manner, the new breaker box can have a correct dryer 30 amp male plug in and plugged directly into the existing outlet, then unplug the add on if the dryer needs to be used. Not to code, but if only three wires, a ground rod could be driven outside and attach the ground for the breaker box to the ground rod.

Corian is expensive, but it is very easy to work. remember a regular saw, a router, and lots of sandpaper is all that is necessary to produce a beautiful set of steps for such a small project as yours. The glue that you use to put it together with is much the same as pvc pipe cement, but not the same. Here is a supplier that can supply sheets, or cut overstock pieces. http://solidsurface.com/sheet-material/overstock/corian?___SID=U&gclid=CjwKCAiA7ovTBRAQEiwAo8dPcYB7DpXfdq-4JnvgHD8-ZnpjkhKD7DQwO3xLC9Y16-qyP50ZaKdcWhoCcf4QAvD_BwE . Like I suggested, obtain a small piece, then cut and form something out of it to see how it works. The quote that you got is from a large facility, who neither wants or needs your business. Their regular clients are everyday, and they have machinery that costs millions of dollars, which has to be paid for. The diamond plate polished aluminum will look great also though. P.S. if you want to try corian,, I suggest that you stay with 1/2 inch thickness all the way, it is much easier to work with, for bull noses, simply double the thickness, then route the edges.

Half inch cement board will work great for this also, can be obtained at any building/flooring store, cheap, and with the 3/16 plate underneath, no give, and no rot.

When I took the diodes to the KIA dealer and asked them to install on my KIA Soul, they said to me, " we will not install, any changes in the wiring harness, even if we do it, will void your warranty for any part connected to the wiring harness". For that reason I did not use the diodes. I work with electronics on a daily basis and have done so for the past 33 years. I know that diodes will not cause a problem, but if the dealer tells me that they will void my warranty, as they did, I will choose not to go that way either. As for the Saturn Vue, there is no factory warranty, so I would definitely use diodes. E-trailer is a good source and so is camping world, just be sure to use the diode assemblies that are designed for this use. When you think about diodes, just think that they are nothing more than a oneway checkvalve for electricity, the only job that the ones used in wiring assemblies is to stop the backward flow of electricity.

I agree with you Herman, if the pump works now, don't fix it. If the pump still cycles off and on needlessly, there is a leak after the pump, that's what needs to be fixed.

Beautiful sites on hgy27, this is where a lot of the Kentucky Derby horse owners, winter their thoroughbreds, very expensive barns to stall them in, and most of the owners have their own training tracks there also.

I copied this from the other post because of redundency. Posted 10 hours ago Good Evening jbhotaling, Unfortunately, due to increasingly negative feedback it was decided not to renew the Trip Planning service as of December 31, 2017. However, this benefit is now provided by, and is a part of, FMCA Roadside Rescue - www.fmca.com/roadsiderescue. Happy to assist if you have any other questions or concerns. Sincerely, Dan Ball, Director of Membership & Marketing

Glad it was simple!

Ray, thanks for your scientific analysis!

Lex, I email my pictures from my smart phone, then I can copy and paste from email. You will happy with the Upgrade.

This would be my choice route also. Just before Troy Alabama on hgy 231, there is a very nice CG called Deer Run, very nice CG, no reservations needed, and it is almost the halfway mark for your route. The CG is full service, very clean, and almost all sites are pullthrough.

Make sure that the arrow on the checkvalve is pointed away from the pump in the downstream position, if put in reversed, the pump cannot cycle on, because of the pressure against the valve. This type pump is a diaphragm style which means that it will pump air as well as water. If any air is in the system, it will actually pump the air out. This is why it is critical to not have an air leak between the fresh water tank and the pump, so that it does not pump air instead of water, causing the pump to not shut off, or cycle very often. You can test the checkvalve to make sure that it is working correctly by blowing into the checkvalve. If you blow into the end that the arrow is pointed to, no air should pass. If you blow into the end that the arrow is pointed away from, the air flow should be unrestricted. If the valve doesn't work as stated above on both tests, the valve is defective. Make sure that you have 12 volts present to the pump also, just an added thought, someone may have turned the pump off or a fuse could be blown if 12 v is not present.